©1968
2024
Peddlethorp has partnered with Cooper and Company in delivering on their vision for The Hayman Kronfeld Building – the sensitive refurbishment and amalgamation of two heritage-listed warehouses (formerly known as the Barrington Building and Old Sofrana House) in Auckland’s Britomart precinct.
Client
Cooper and Company
Location
Britomart, Auckland
Completion Date
December 2022
Awards
Auckland Architecture Awards Heritage Category Winner 2023
Research determined that the buildings’ original names were the PG Hayman & Co. Warehouse and the Kronfeld Building. Gustav (Prussia) and Louisa (Samoa) Kronfeld who commissioned the buildings were successful local merchants and the reinstatement of the original name seeks in some small way to acknowledge the Kronfeld’s history.
The newly combined building features three levels of 5 Green Star rated Grade A office accommodation across contiguous 1000m2 floorplates with ground floor retail – bringing all-new building services, lifts and fire escapes along with a seismic upgrade (100% NBS structural rating) to a rich heritage character space.
A single full timber bay within the existing post-and-beam structure was removed and this zone assigned a new light-filled core incorporating glass lifts, stairs and linking steel that binds the two buildings into a structural whole. This simple gesture resolved accessibility issues across the differing floor levels of the buildings, while delivering a clear diagram where heritage and new are blended but apparent.
Continuous use is by far the greatest sustainability action that can be undertaken, particularly when embodied carbon is considered. With both buildings more than 115 years old the development has significantly reduced carbon emissions from materials by retaining the existing structure (concrete foundations, basement floor slab, reinforcing steel, brickwork, and timber) and reducing finishes through exposed brick walls and floors.
New materials used are steel and glass – sympathetic to the existing heritage technologies. Demolition materials were reused wherever possible, or recycled materials sourced. Salvaged timber framing and flooring was used extensively. Recycled brickwork is deployed as flooring in the existing brick lined office lobby.
Heritage facades are preserved, and careful openings limited to extensions of the existing where retail frontage is required. Two new sets of round windows in the eastern façade face Takutai Square, a gesture to the ‘heart’ of Britomart – their diameters matching those of the adjacent arched heritage windows.
The Customs Street façade is provided with a replica heritage pediment, replacing the original that was destroyed during earlier earthquake proofing. Considerable research to determine the geometry of this complex element was undertaken, followed by significant digital modelling, mould making and fabrication in GRC.
